Method of wool pulling and sorting



A118- 29, 1944 s.- s. sTElNHARTl-:R 2,356,898

METHOD OF WOOL PULLING AND'SORTIANG Filed Jan. l5, 1944 .!laz'nm remand mi: any IN VEN TOR.

.Patented Aug. 29, 1944 2,356,898 `MIETHOD OF WOOL PLLING AND SORTING VStanley S. Steinharter, Cincinnati, or of one-fifth to Augusta K.

Ohio, assign- Stpinharter and one-fifth to Carlisle Y. Steinharter, both of Cincinnati, Ohio, and one-fifth. to-

one-fifth to E.

N. Parker Swift,

N. Morang, and one-fifth to Al West, all of Detroit, Mich. Application January'15, 1944, Serial No. 518,455

3 Claims.

This invention relates to methods of pulling or otherwise stripping wool from an animal skin such asa sheepskin and it is also concerned with the problem of wool sorting which is incident to the pulling or stripping. The invention also has an applicationto the sorting of the various grades of wool contained in a sheared eece as distinguished from a sheepskin with the wool attached.

In the art vof wool pulling generally, for time out of mind it has been the universal practice to proceed substantially as follows: The skin to which the wool is still attached is first thoroughly cleaned and is then treated with a depilating solution of which a representative type is sodium sulphide. After treatment for a xed period of time suii'icent to loosen the hair without causing deterioration of' the skin, the skin is then turned over to a skilled hand worker known as a wool puller. n the operation of removing the wool from the skin the wool puller first laps the saturated 'skin with the hair out over a slanting board known as a beam Holding the upper end ofthe beam against his body he proceeds to strip the wool from the exposed portion of the skin and at the same time sorts it according to 'recognized grades. The standard procedure is to first strip the back or main grade of wool as this grade is the one most directly exposed to the operator practicing this method. Thereafter the stained and shorter ank wools are removed, followed by the coarse rump Wool, and nally the grey leg and head wool. As each grade ofwool is removed it is placed in a receptacle vintended for thereception of that particular grade.

After half of the skin has been stripped or pulled in this manner the position of the skin on the beam is reversed andthe other half is similarly treated. The entire operation of pulling and sorting is in all cases performed by one man working individually. Although termed pulling the manual operation can be more accurately described as a pushing operation as the operator holding the end of the beam against his body removes the loosened wool from the skin with an outward movement of his arms and hands.

Very obviously there are a number of objections to this method. Since the grades of wool are not delineated on the skin by any very exact lines of demarcation, it requires a very skillful operator to perform the sorting of the grades with the degree of exactness that is required commercially. It is diflicult to train men to do the work properly and, even though the wage scale is very high, there are many who are never able to learn. 'Another `specific objection is that in removing the back or main "portion rst by the rather awkward method just described the operator almost invariably mixes certain adjacent portions of 'the inferior grades with the main portion. Since the presence of even a small amount of inferior wool" the main grade is frequently sufficient to cause'the entire main grade to be `classifiedA as an inferior grade, this type of mistake'may be very costly yet atv the same time it is one that is very diicult to avoid.

Aside from the inaccuracy of the sorting results obtained, the beam method is likewise very unsatisfaetoryfbecause it is slow, cumbersome and exceedingly unpleasant Awork for the operator.

In the presen-t invention it has been discovered that greatly improved'results may be obtained by the use of a method which is almost the eX- act converse of the beam method. In accordance with the present method, after treatment of the skin in a depilating solution as Ain the beam method each of the various grades of wool is then removed byvone ormore operators whose duties are confined to the removal of that particular grade. In addition, the inferior grades Aare all removed prior to the removal of the main grade as distinguished from the reverse procedure taught by the prior art, .In this way there is a double check as to the presence of inferior wool in the main grade as the operators performing the removal of the inferior grades check on it first while the operators removing the main grade check on it after the inferior grades have been removed.

The methodof the invention preferably contemplates the movement of the skins from one operator to another or one pair of operators to another'pair as indicated by the arrows in the drawing. manually on a table or preferably on a conveyor belt with the operators positioned on one or both sides thereof. The method also contemplates the outward pulling of the wool away from the center of the skin as distinguished from the pushing operation of the prior art.l This permits the operators better to delineate the lines of demarcation -between the various grades of wool, particularly when, as in the preferred practice of the method, the skins are moved in a horizontal plane at approximately waist height.

The drawing and legends appended thereto illustrate rather diagrammatically the various steps in the preferred practice of the method. Reading from top to bottom, Figures 1-5, Vinclusive, illustrate the preferred sequence of steps This movement may be performed in the removal of the wool as the skin passes through the various stages of the operation. The arrows indicate the direction of the movement of the skin and also the direction of the wool removal in the various steps of the operation.

In Figure 1, shown at the top of the page, an entire sheepskin is illustrated, all of the wool being still in position thereon and the various grade areas marked off. lThe skin has been designated generally as I0, the back or main grade as I I, the iianks as I2, the legs as I3, the head as I4 and the rump as I5. I

As shown in Figure 2, the grey leg and-head wool is removed first, preferably by pulling away v from the center of the skin. This is one of the inferior grades and after removal may be deposited in a particular container provided for this purpose.

In Figure 3, the coarse rump wool is shown as being removed preferably by a pair of operators working one on each side of the skin. This wool, although strong, is particularly coarse and it is quite essential that no appreciable part of it be permitted'to mingle with the liner grades.

In Figure 4, the stained and shorter flank wools are shown as being removed in a similar way. These wools are of good quality but are usually classified at least a grade lower than the back wool becausevthe fibers; are shorter and usually discolored. Y

In the nal step shown in Figure 5, the main grade alone remains and may be removed separately, preferably by pulling from the sides. If at this stage of the operation any of the inferior gradesstillA remain adjacent the main grade the operator removing the main grade can readily separate them at this time and deposit them in their appropriate containers. Y

After all of the grades have been removed there will stillbe certain tufts of Wool left on the skin due to the uneven action of the depilating agent. These canbe removed manually, or preferably, While the skin is still on the conveyor, they may be removed by a mechanical clipping operation.- ,Y

VAfter the removal of all of the wool the ends of the` skin are trimmed off for scrap and the skin is .prepared for commercial use.

To those who are familiar with the art it will be apparent that the method of lthis invention likewise has application to the sorting of the Various grades of wool contained in a eece. In the application of the method to a fleece it is of course not necessary to separate the wool from the skin. However, the fleece may be moved in the same way as illustrated for a skin and the same routine of sorting operations may be performed. In the case of a eece as in the case of a sheepskin it will follow that the method of the invention permits a much more accurate sorting operation than would be the case if the wool were simply sorted manually by a single operator while the fleece was laid out before him on a table. ,Y

In substance',A` the method of the invention permits a complete wool pulling operation which is much quicker and cleaner than that practiced heretofore. In particular, the method permits the sorting of the various grades of wool in a much more accurate way than has been possible heretofore. The diiculties experienced in the training of skilled operators are largely avoided because under the preferred practice of the present method each operator performs only a single operation at which he should be able to become skilled' in very short order. The removal o f the inferior grades of wool first is particularly important since, as previously stated, it is in this way possible to keep the main grade almost entirely free from inferior grades. Even if a portion of the main grade should become mixed with the inferior grades inthe initial steps of the method this is not nearly lasserious a matter as mixing any portion of the inferior grades with the mainV grade. The actual physical operation of removal is 'by this method made materially easier as the operator is performing a natural outward pulling operation rather than a downhill pushing operation. The lack of direct physical contact between the saturated skin and the operators body is also a'great improvement over the prior methods.

Having described Inyinvention,v .I claim:

l. In the art of wool .pulling and sorting the method which includeszthe steps of moving a sheepskin-in front ofI a seriesof operators, each of whom` removesvthe-wool from a `specific defined areamof thesheepskin, the superior main or back grade being removed bythe last operator in the seriesafter-{theprior removal of the inferior grades by the'preceding operators in the series. n gg@ 2. In the art ofwool vpullingrthe method which includes the stepsof passing a sheepskin along a series of operators,V each of Ywhom removes a-single grade of wool, the .inferior grades next to the outer margins of theskin beingremoved prior to the removal ofthe superior centrallylocated back wool- 3. In the'art of wool pulling. and sorting the method whichincludes the-.successive steps of treating a sheepskin with 'a depilating agent and then moving 4tlfxetreatedskin along a series of operators, each f whom removes a single grade of wool, the inferior grades being all removed in orderl prior to the` removal ofthe back wool.

, srEnvHARTER. 

